This page provides additional information related to topics covered by the Bellingham Plan.
Moving toward more equitable land-use policies
Bellingham’s neighborhood plans were originally adopted in 1980 and evolved uniquely over time as Bellingham’s population doubled. These 25 neighborhood plans were historically adopted by reference each time the citywide comprehensive plan was updated.
However, as part of the 2025 update to Bellingham’s Comprehensive Plan (the Bellingham Plan), we moved away from individual neighborhood plans, which established unique land use rules for each of the ~450 subareas in the Bellingham. Instead, we moved toward land-use policies that are more equitable than the neighborhood-by-neighborhood plans, and that align with new state laws and community feedback.
Why we moved away from neighborhood plans?
- To achieve compliance with new Washington State housing laws it was necessary to adopt the Bellingham Plan without including reference to neighborhood plans and their exclusionary housing policies.
- Each neighborhood plan includes unique land use and development design policies and the inconsistency between plans presents barriers to a fair and equitable application of standards.
- People in different neighborhoods, and even subareas in those neighborhoods, are not subject to the same land use rules.
- The variability in neighborhood plans stems largely from which neighborhoods have historically had residents with the resources and time to drive City involvement and action.
- This variability in land-use guidelines means more staff time is required to review projects. Moving toward more consistent and simpler land use regulations allows us to use public funds more efficiently by reducing the amount of staff time required to review projects.
- Many neighborhood plans were outdated, and most of the actions they have called for have been accomplished or pulled into other City master plans. Some plans date almost entirely from 1980, others were updated in the 1990s or early 2000s.
Retiring the neighborhood plans removes these inconsistencies, complexity, and variability. It also allows a more direct link between the newly updated policies in the Bellingham Plan and the development regulations in Bellingham’s Municipal Code. And it will lead to more equitable, transparent, and predictable outcomes for everyone as we work together to implement the community’s vision.
